Dotcom album cover 'inappropriate'

A Palmerston North lecturer in Japanese culture has struck out at Kim Dotcom for his choice of album cover artwork, saying the image is distasteful because of connections between it and the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

But internet entrepreneur Dotcom says the lecturer should have more important things to worry about.

The cover of Dotcom's debut album Good Times, released last month, features him grinning while holding a coral gerbera flower.

FLOWER POWER: A screenshot from the Japanese song Hana Wa Saku, aka Flowers will Bloom, written in the aftermath of the March 2011 earthquake, which caused a massive tsunami to strike the coast of Japan.

"Issues of copyright aside, and ruling out coincidence as the song has received worldwide publicity, it seems distasteful to conflate a self-promoting publicity stunt with Japan's attempt to express grief at futures denied, and hope for futures possible."

Dotcom said he had never heard of Flowers Will Bloom before, and was puzzled by Shino's connection.